Ukrainian Economy Performs Better Than Expected

[AkMike]

Things are finally looking up for Ukraine!


(RTTNews) - The Ukrainian economy expanded in 2010 due to strong exports and investment, the International Monetary Fund said Tuesday.

An IMF mission visited Kyiv to hold discussions on the 2011 Article IV Consultations and the second review under the Stand-By Arrangement. The IMF will continue talks with Ukrainian officials in the coming weeks before the approval of fresh loans, Thanos Arvanitis, mission chief for Ukraine said.

Ukraine has received more than US$3 billion from IMF as part of US$15 billion loan package.

"The Ukrainian economy performed better than expected in 2010, with growth exceeding 4 percent of GDP, supported by strong exports and recovering investment and private consumption," Arvanitis said.

According to Arvanitis, the monetary policy framework remains appropriate and inflation declined steadily to 8.2%, close to the central bank's target. He said pension reform legislation is expected to be enacted in March and public administration reform is underway.


INO.com News - Ukrainian Economy Performs Better Than Expected: IMF

[IreneLviv]

Are you joking or what?
Things are getting better for tycoons only - with growing GDP wages and jobs arre getting down, social/medical budgets are cut, etc
eg Lviv doctors are on strike from 1 March - due to cut salaries and lack of financing. Each third SME stopped operation in the Lviv area during the past 6 months.
Evene Donetsk is now demending that the President resigns or else....

[Gotno Gizmo]

I agree with Irene, although I'm not in Ukraine at the moment, I'm in daily contact, and the reports I'm getting are not happy ones.
In my recent thread "Ukraine and the IMF (where coincidentally AkMike, under your strict rules of Post/Thread placement, this item would have ideally been placed)", I did say, that report was "upbeat", and continued "such reports are never negative".
The IMF who are loaning the money have to justify to the financial world that it's a sound investment. I am not saying that the IMF are falsifying the statistics, but the differential between the value of exports going out and the resultant revenue gained coming back into the state coffers can be wide apart. This factor is now being understood much better in Western Europe where billions of dollars worth of trade revenue is being lost to the home economies and ends up in unknown locations.

I am troubled that Ukraine's last Presidential election resembled the western style of politics, whereby the would be candidate's campaigns are sponsored by "smart money" oligarchy. Clearly, once the new President is in place he is indebted and beholden to his sponsors, and this must undermine his ability to serve always in the best interests of the country, particular in matters that concern the poorest sectors of society.

Concerning the IMF requirements of the loan; that usually demands a tightening of social expenditure and requirements of government services to be depleated in favour of private enterprise. That action alone could cause problems for many in the Ukrainian society.
Add to that rising food and energy prices, it's not an upbeat situatiuon, but then I'm just a person whose glass is always half empty, and not half full!

[AkMike]

Irene, I only get to spend a month or two a year in Ukrainee. 7 years ago it was pretty bad in the places I was at. during the last 2 years I've noticed improvement. It might not be noticable if you see it everyday but when you're away for a while the changes are noticed!
LOL, they're actually replacing manhole covers for the storm drains and sewers instead of filling the holes with branches and brush so motorists can see the hazzard. Why would anyone steal a cast iron manhole cover?
7 years ago most of the street lights were burned out or missing. Now you can actually see at night with the new lights.

The roads even apperared to be in better shape than a year ago and much better than 5 years go.

[AkMike]

Originally Posted by Gotno Gizmo

In my recent thread "Ukraine and the IMF (where coincidentally AkMike, under your strict rules of Post/Thread placement, this item would have ideally been placed)"

GG, this concerns economy and business so I placed it here. Deal with it or report it to a mod and they can move it as they see fit.